Two Nigerians were killed off the shores of Gbanken Beach in Liberia’s Grand Kru while they were on the Ophelia Panana, a ship sailing for Japan.
Per a report, the vessel was cruising to Japan, but the crew members discovered Nigerian stowaways on it as they were closer to some of the coastal towns in the nation. The crew members on the vessel, believed to be from China, reportedly took the lives of the two men and then dumped the bodies into the ocean. However, the others managed to swim on shore and were rescued with severe wounds on their bodies during the night and morning hours of September 11 and 12, respectively.
In an interview with FrontPageAfrica, the Head of the Joint Security Task Force in Grand Kru, Chris Teah, revealed that the ship departed from Nigeria’s Lagos about five days back and sailed via the area where the unfortunate incident had taken place.
The vessel was less than one mile away from the shore. Six Nigerians managed to swim and reached the shore. They informed that there were 14 from Nigeria and reported that they were on the way to Japan. It is believed that the crew members on the ship could be either Japanese or Chinese as they look almost similar, Teah mentioned.
How they were discovered
He disclosed that the Nigerians were discovered in the ship after they had been pounding on the vessel, demanding food from the crew members. They reportedly spent five days without food or water while on the boat.
Teah added that they were discovered up the deep sea by the crew members. The crew members sprayed hot water on them, and two colleagues lost their lives. Six individuals swam to reach the shore.
Per the Nigerians, they boarded the vessel secretly. When they departed from Nigeria about five days back, they ran out of food. They began hitting the yacht so the crew members could understand that individuals were on board the vessel.
The crew members came and rescued them. The crew members were peaceful for about two days. On the third day, they began maltreating them until they reached Liberia. Teah revealed that a Fanti vessel from Grand Cess went on the ocean to rescue the others who had been thrown off the boat.
Some escaped and were rescued.
Four people were rescued from the vessel directly, and the crew members threw the last two into the ocean. The two that were reported to be killed were not seen, and it is unknown if they were killed in Liberia or the deep sea.
Teah highlighted that the last two Nigerians thrown into the ocean were rescued and safely brought to the shore alive, bringing the number of people saved to 12.
According to what he said, those rescued are in the custody of the Joint Security in the nation. The Nigerians said things were not working their way in Nigeria, so they were going stowaway.
References: Vanguard, FIJ, FleetMon
